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In the author’s note, Miller ends with “I used to not like God because God didn’t resolve.” Personally I don’t like that God doesn’t resolve things as fast as I’d like him to, but I have always loved God.

There are many people who don’t like God because of the hardships and bad things that are going on in their lives. We are human and imperfect so at times we get impatient and frustrated with God. It’s important to remember that God always loves us and cares about us. God is there in our hard times even when we can’t feel his presence.

I myself used to be angry at God because of the unresolved things in my life. This was a long time ago back when I was a teenager. I then came to the realization that God knows what he’s doing and that everything does happen for a reason. Since we’re human we can’t understand why God doesn’t resolve things neatly and quickly for us. However, we have to trust him and keep walking on the path he created for us.

It’s never easy to have unresolved things in our lives, but they happen to everyone. God knows what our thresholds are, and he always stays within them because he doesn’t want to give us more then we can handle. We have to be thankful for the blessings that we have and remember that God is always there waiting for us. God normally leaves unresolved things in our lives because we’ve fallen off our path and God wants to get us back on the path.

My final thought for this blog post, God will resolve things in ways that we can never imagine.

I am now reading a book called Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. My next few blogs will be related to the book with a random bible verse or two thrown in. To start I’d like to discuss the word father. In the begging of the book Miller states that he wonders why God wants to be called “Father” when so many fathers abandon their children.

Why does God want to be called “Father?”

The Oxford dictionary defines a father as “an important male figure in the origin and early history of something” and “a man who provides care and protection.” God isn’t a man, but he did create man in his image. Since he created man, he is the “father” of mankind. No one provides for us or cares for us like God does. There are also many verses in the Bible where he states that he wants to protect and comfort us. While there are a lot of fathers who do abandon their children, there are many great fathers out there. Calling somebody father is a term of respect and honor. Nobody deserves our respect or honor more then God does.

Jesus himself called God his “Father” in the New Testament. Jesus wants us to follow and live by his example so if he called God “Father” there is no reason why we shouldn’t call God “Father.”

My final thought for this blog post – God wants to make up for absent fathers and have a loving and forever lasting relationship with us. Like a true father should, God will always be there for us and never abandon us.

11 My son, do not despise the Lord’s disciplineor be weary of his reproof,12 for the Lord reproves him whom he loves,as a father the son in whom he delights.

Proverbs 3:11-12

It can be easy to despise Gods discipline. It can be easy to despise God when things go bad in our lives. We need Gods discipline in our lives or Satan will prevail.

When God disciplines us it means that it’s time to repent and ask him for forgiveness. It also means that we have fallen off God’s path and need to find our way back onto it.

It can be hard to know that God will rebuke us, but he rebukes us because he loves us. After God is done reproofing, he always pours favor on us and blesses us.

It’s better to be disciplined and punished by God then have to face an eternity in hell. Gods discipline is not punishment, it’s simply his way of showing us the errors of our ways and bringing us closer to him.

It can be hard to be a giver, especially when we prefer to be receivers. We may think that we don’t have anything to give. Even if we think we don’t have money to give, the truth is t hat we do. God always gives to those who give to others. In fact, God gives to us faster then we can give it away. Even if you’re not at a place where you feel comfortable giving money, there are other things that you can give. You can give your time, talents, prayer, advice, an ear to listen, etc. Even saying the right thing to someone at the right time can change their world!

Giving to others is a way to show them love and have a connection with them. In fact, God calls us to give to others. Holding onto money and not giving it away is a sign of not trusting God. When a person doesn’t trust God, God can’t give anything to him or her. Giving to others is a blessing in more ways then one. It’s a blessing to the person who receives, and it’s also a blessing to the givers relationship with God. God will also bless us with good things when we give to others.

A giving heart is that kind of heart that God wants us to have. A giving heart is caring, selfless, and compassionate. God gave us his one and only son. The least we can do is give to others and let God replenish us in return.

I will end this post with a bible verse:”For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me into your home” – Matthew 25:35.